


Justified

by jackwabbit



Series: I Rang the Bell with My Heart in My Mouth [14]
Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: Culmets - Freeform, Drabble, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-11
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:47:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26408938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jackwabbit/pseuds/jackwabbit
Summary: Season: Post-Two, Pre-Three.Spoilers: Entire Hugh Culber arc through the end of season two.Summary: It can be hard to accept compliments and awards. But in this one, Hugh feels justified – just not for the reasons most might expect.Note: This is the supporting evidence for the earlier chapter "Point".
Relationships: Hugh Culber/Paul Stamets
Series: I Rang the Bell with My Heart in My Mouth [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1904764
Comments: 8
Kudos: 9





	Justified

**Author's Note:**

> Stories in this series originally written and posted as inspiration struck. Later reordered into chronological order. See notes above for more information on time frame/related stories.

It wasn’t dying.

That had been easy.

After all, he hadn’t known it was coming. There was no anxiety. No fear.

And he hadn’t suffered.

It was over in an instant.

It was nothing.

And it wasn’t what came after.

No, it wasn’t the burning. Or the madness. Or the hope that appeared out of nowhere only to be ripped away.

It wasn’t even the rebirth, painful as it was.

It was the fact that he’d stayed.

He’d wanted to run. He’d tried to run. Hell, he had run. But in the end, he came back.

To _Discovery_.

To Paul.


End file.
